


Cheetos and Chocolate....STAT!

by whiteswan



Series: Emergency Protocols [1]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M, Gen, Implied Relationships, Out of Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-27
Updated: 2014-07-27
Packaged: 2018-02-10 15:17:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2029938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whiteswan/pseuds/whiteswan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prequel to "Squeeze"  New team member Alex Blake slowly learns how the team handles certain situations.  Because there are some things that just aren't in the employee handbook…</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cheetos and Chocolate....STAT!

                Alex Blake sank into her chair with a sigh; she’d forgotten just how intense even an in-office workday could be with the BAU.  She’d only been back for a couple of weeks and she was already drained.  Her attention was pulled to the blonde who plopped into the seat across from her and she did her best to smile at her, despite her own mood, “Good morning JJ.” 

To her surprise, the normally friendly woman only glanced up with a sour look on her face.  JJ must have seen her surprise because she sighed and shook her head at herself before speaking, “Alex, good morning.  I’m sorry; it’s been a rough couple of days and they’ve made me short-tempered.”

                “It’s alright, I completely understand.”  They were still getting to know each other so she hesitated for a moment before asking, “Is there anything I can help with?  Do you need to talk?”

                JJ’s response was a small smile and a shake of her head, “Thanks Alex, but not right now.  I appreciate the offer though.”

                A little later when JJ, still visibly stressed, left for a coffee break, Reid joined Alex at her desk; he’d noticed her worried glances at their teammate and wanted to give her a heads-up.  “JJ’s been having some issues with her mother ever since Will’s funeral; that and trying to help Henry with all of the changes they’ve been dealing with have her stressed out.  And with Garcia out of town…”

                “I understand.  Thank you Spencer.”  She hadn’t met the infamous Garcia yet but knew that she was JJ’s best friend.  Spencer’s pride in his position as Henry’s godfather ensured that she’d known how close they were long before she’d rejoined the unit.  It didn’t take profiling skills to figure out that Garcia (and Morgan) being out of town and Prentiss having left the unit robbed JJ of a significant portion of her support network, just when she needed it the most.  She also knew that her own ability to help was naturally hindered by the fact that they didn’t know each other well yet.  Perhaps in time….

                Her thoughts were interrupted when JJ re-entered the bullpen, stabbing a finger angrily at her phone; upon reaching her desk she slammed down the phone and yanked her purse from her drawer before spinning on a heel and stalking in the direction of the kitchenette.  In her haste she passed by Rossi and Hotch, who were returning from a meeting, without even sparing them a glance.  The two men stopped in their tracks and watched her round the corner; Rossi’s eyebrows were nearly at his hairline in surprise. 

Once she’d disappeared from sight, Hotch was the first to recover from his surprise and speak, “Reid, when are they due to restock the snack machine?”

The younger man’s brow furrowed, “The day after tomorrow.  You don’t mean….?”

“Yes; I checked this morning when I noticed her mood.” Alex tried to hide her surprise at this; Hotch hadn’t been in the bullpen all morning.  And what did the snack machine have to do with anything?  The Unit Chief seemed not to notice her as he questioned Reid once again, “Do you still have some extras on hand?”

                She felt her mask threatening to crack from shock as she watched her protégée rummage through his messenger bag for a moment before handing their boss several snack-sized bags of Cheetos as casually as he would have handed over a requested file.  Nor had Hotch’s expression changed, other than the faint lines of concern that had formed at the corners of his eyes; he merely pocketed the snacks and requested that they send JJ up to his office when she returned.  As he and Rossi walked away she heard the older man ask about Hershey’s and Hotch’s reply that he had that covered.  What on Earth was all that about?

                Further pondering on the matter was postponed when JJ returned once again and tossed her purse back into the drawer with a disgusted expression on her face.  Alex watched curiously from under her eyelashes as Reid relayed Hotch’s message and the blonde turned towards the stairs without question.  When Hotch’s door snapped shut behind her, Alex looked up just in time to see the privacy blinds drop and close.

                Half an hour later, she picked up a file and made for the stairs; she’d been trying to put it off until JJ returned but couldn’t wait any longer: she needed to run this one by Hotch.  When her tap on the door was acknowledged with a ‘come in’ she stepped inside, wary of what JJ’s mood might be.  To her surprise she spotted the blonde on the couch that sat against the wall with Hotch in the chair beside her; she’d apparently interrupted them talking.  There were crumpled wrappers on the coffee table in front of them and JJ’s now calm expression let her know that things were safe.  Not wanting to interfere with their conversation any longer than necessary, she handed the file to her boss and briefly explained the issue she’d encountered.  Once Hotch had promised to follow up on it, she turned to head back to her desk and leave the two to their talk.  To her surprise, JJ rose and gathered the wrappers from the table and tossed them in the bin before joining her instead.   Their progress was halted momentarily when Hotch stepped up next to them and slipped an extra Hershey bar into JJ’s hand before nodding to them both and heading back to his desk. 

Alex caught sight of a small smile on the blonde’s face as they reached their desks and went back to work; the crisis had been averted, somehow.  Reaching for a new folder with a sigh, she made a mental note to make the time to talk to Dave and learn more about her new coworkers; while it would take time to gain their trust and find her place in their ‘family,’ she would at least like to know some details so she wouldn’t be caught quite so much by surprise.  And to think that she hadn’t even met two of the team members yet!


End file.
